Fakher Haider

TheNew York Times

September 19, 2005, in Basra, Iraq

Several men claiming to be police officers seized Haider from his home in al-Asmaey neighborhood on the night of September 18. His body was found the next day in the southwestern Al-Kiblah neighborhood with a gunshot to the head, according to his family. He also had bruises on his back, The New York Times said in a statement.

Haider, 38, who reported for TheTimes for more than two years, also worked for Merbad TV in Basra, the Guardian of London, National Geographic, and other publications. He was married with three small children.

The Timesreported that before his murder, Haider "had just filed a report on clashes between British forces in the area and members of a militia that has infiltrated the Basra police force but is loyal to the radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr."